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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26717281">Falling Off the Precipice</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/HarmonizingSunsets/pseuds/HarmonizingSunsets'>HarmonizingSunsets</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Community (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Annie back from DC, Character Growth, Established Relationship, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Long Shot, Love Confessions, Mutual Pining, One Shot, Post-Canon, The group finds out, They finally stop being in denial, They finally talk out their feelings, i want them to be happy, post-season 6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-09-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-09-29</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 07:47:48</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,368</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26717281</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/HarmonizingSunsets/pseuds/HarmonizingSunsets</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Annie and Jeff aren’t a thing.</p><p>If they were a thing, Annie would know about it.</p><p>I mean…she thinks she’d know.</p><p>...</p><p>Annie and Jeff are done with the will-they-won’t-they thing.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Annie Edison &amp; Jeff Winger, Annie Edison/Jeff Winger, Mention of Britta/Duncan</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>134</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Falling Off the Precipice</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hey there! I decided to write another fic for these two. Shoutout to the Jeff x Annie group chat on Tumblr. I love fangirling over them with you guys. I'm never over how in sync Jeff and Annie are and am always thinking of what could have been after the show ended. </p><p>This takes place a year after Annie leaves DC, and she's been back at Greendale for a while. I hope you enjoy it!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Annie and Jeff aren’t a thing.</p><p>If they were a thing, Annie would know about it.</p><p>I mean…she thinks she’d know.</p><p>It’s something she’s wanted for so long and then pretended not to want. She made herself let go of it, only for her to want it again. But she wasn’t able to have it, because she had to leave.</p><p>Annie sighs, deciding to do the thing she always does when she’s overwhelmed.</p><p>She starts to make a list.</p><p>She titles it, “Reasons Jeff and I are just friends.”</p><p>
  <strong>Number 1: They don’t go on dates.  </strong>
</p><p>Since getting back from her year internship at DC, she and Jeff have spent more time together. But they weren’t dates. Friends go out to the movies and meet up for coffee all the time! They also sometimes get takeout, and Annie helps him grade his papers. She finds it fun to check every multiple-choice question and put smiley faces on the papers that did well. Jeff chastises her for it, saying that his students will be able to tell it was her and not him who graded it. Annie asked how his students even knew who she was, and she swore she saw him blush.</p><p>But that’s ridiculous, Annie thinks. Jeff Winger doesn’t blush.</p><p>So yeah, they spend time together in totally normal settings. Well, except when Jeff went with her to a work function. Annie was still trying to make friends at the new office, but they all were weary of her for working her way up the ladder so quickly. The thought of someone not liking her was ludicrous to him, so he went with her to help.</p><p>He stuck by her side the whole night, gathering gossip and adding to the conversation when it hit a lag. When one of her co-workers expressed disproval of her community college education, she wowed them with her knowledge of the criminal justice system. As she impressed them, Jeff smiled at her in the way he always did. Astonished, yet fully aware of how incredible she is.</p><p>But none of that stuff classifies as dating. There’s no hand-holding (except for when Annie grabbed Jeff’s hand during a scary scene at the movies), they always split the bill (well, Jeff usually pays for coffee, but that’s because he has a coupon stamp), and there are no good night kisses at the door.</p><p>Fine…there was one good night kiss at the door. But it was on the cheek—totally non-romantic. Annie didn’t think about how nice the feeling of his scruff was against her cheek or close her eyes for a few seconds in the hope that his lips would move their aim.</p><p>Annie picks up her pen again, trying to stay on task.</p><p>
  <strong>Number 2: They don’t act like a couple. </strong>
</p><p>There was no difference between the way Jeff acted around Annie and how he acted around their other friends. Sure, she could batt her eyes and get him to do something others couldn’t, but it’s not like he did big things for her.</p><p>But there was that one time that Jeff picked Annie up after she got her wisdom teeth removed. He practically carried Annie into his car because she was so out of it. When she woke up, she begged him for a smoothie despite his no drinks in the car policy. He didn’t even make fun of her for how ridiculous she must have looked, drooling with cotton balls in her mouth.</p><p>Instead, Jeff ended up stopping at a Dutch Brothers. He got her a strawberry smoothie with double whipped cream. But he didn’t let her touch it until they got to her apartment. Jeff stayed and gave her pain medication. He watched Gilmore Girls with her, even though he hated how fast they talked. She fell asleep on the couch, and she woke up with a blanket covering her that wasn’t there before.</p><p>But Jeff would do all of that for Britta or Abed too, right?</p><p>Well, at least Annie knew that she didn’t act like his girlfriend. She cringed when thinking back to the time she pretended to be Mrs. Winger, ordering gross scotch and tricking the hotel staff. Back then, her ideas of romance were more surface level. She knew now that being someone’s significant other meant more than just ordering food.</p><p>Sure, Annie did go as his plus one to a high school reunion. But that wasn’t because she was hoping a rom-com like situation would take place, where a fake date would turn real. Annie was just doing him a favor because Jeff didn’t want to go alone.</p><p>She had put her hand on his arm when someone mentioned his failed law career. Annie laughed with him with his old friends, who spent most of their time ditching pep assemblies and watching documentaries none of them understood. They also had danced together, but it wasn’t romantic.</p><p>Although, his hand that landed on her back sent sparks through her skin. When Annie laid in bed later that night, she could feel his touch. When she closed her eyes, she also kept seeing his expression when she walked out of the apartment in her <a href="https://zapaka.com/products/purple-v-neck-long-prom-dress">purple floor-length dress</a>. Jeff had smiled, and his eyes lingered on her with a glint of adoration. It had made her legs shake a little as she walked towards him.</p><p>Annie took a deep breath, gripping her pen tighter in her hands, trying to focus back on the list.</p><p>
  <strong>Number 3: They weren’t each other’s first lifelines. </strong>
</p><p>When you're friends with someone, you do little things to show your love and support. But when you’re in a relationship, it often means that they’re the first person you call for help. Friends can be lifelines too, but usually, there’s a limit to what they’ll do for you. Annie and Jeff had a limit.</p><p>Jeff had dropped her off at the airport when she left for DC, giving her a brief kiss goodbye, but it wasn’t during the early hours of the morning. She’d jumped his car once, but she hadn’t driven that long to get there.</p><p>But as Annie wrote number three on the list, she had to admit that they went to each other first for bigger things. </p><p>When Annie's parents forgot to get her a Hanukkah gift, she let it go. But then she saw pictures of them with their whole family in Aspin on Facebook, and it tipped her over the edge. She called Jeff in tears before even knowing what she was doing. He came straight over. She heard his key turning on the engine of his car within the first sentence she said.</p><p>She talked to Jeff about how her parents didn’t seem to care about her once she betrayed them by going to rehab. As she lit the candles later, Jeff pulled a pack of purple pens out of his pockets. He apologized for not knowing it was the week of Hanukkah, and it was all he could find at the grocery store on short notice.</p><p>But she hadn’t cared, taking the pens and swinging her arms around him. He’d let her hug him for a long time, his arms tight around her as they held one another in the middle of her apartment floor.</p><p>Annie also showed up for him when he reached out. One time, Annie had been on a flight to California and flew right back when she got a text that Jeff’s mother had passed. She found him at a bar with a drink in his hands. Annie didn’t say much, but she put her hand on top of his on the bar. Jeff squeezed it and didn’t reach for his glass again.</p><p>Later that night, Annie had driven him home. When Jeff landed on the bed, his hand caught her arm as she turned to leave. He whispered for her to stay, so she had. Annie crawled under his fancy covers next to him. Jeff encircled his arms around her, his breath warm on her neck. She rested her head on his chest, muttering words laced with affection until he fell asleep.</p><p>So yeah, they’re friends. Everything they do together since she got back from DC has been entirely platonic, despite what the gossip column at Greendale says. Despite the arched brow that Britta gives when she and Jeff look a little too long at each other. Despite the feeling that she gets every time he leans a fraction closer to her.</p><p>Despite all of this, they’re just friends.</p><p>Annie stares at the three-numbered list, which she now realizes was written with one of Jeff’s purple pens.</p><p>Crap, Annie thinks.</p><p>So, maybe they’re a little bit of a thing.</p><p>She jiggles her knee as she sits on the couch, thinking about what to do. She needs to talk to Jeff about this. But they’ve always been fond of the in-between, of saying things and giving meaningful looks, without putting names to them. She used to blame Jeff solely for this, but Annie knows she’s just as much at fault.</p><p>Neither of them has mentioned their kiss in the study room since she moved back. Annie knew why Jeff hadn’t. It was because he was waiting, letting her decide if she still wanted him. That fact should be a relief. Annie likes having control and hates the unknowns. But now, Annie finds what she knows to be terrifying.</p><p>She knows that if she said the word, Jeff would be with her.</p><p>This shouldn’t be scary, because they’re both ready for a relationship. Annie is no longer as oblivious and obsessively craving perfection, and Jeff isn’t that cynical lawyer who cheats for what he wants.</p><p>Although they’re both still complicated, still prone to make mistakes and fall into past patterns.</p><p>But that’s the thing, Annie knows his flaws, and he knows hers. The fact that they still want each other, despite knowing each other so well, is what’s terrifying. It’s scary that once they have the conversation, they’ll be no going back.</p><p>Annie knows that she loves Jeff Winger more than she’ll ever love anybody. Even if she found someone else, that fact would remain irrevocably true. </p><p>It’s that irrevocableness that gives Annie the courage to stand and walk out of her apartment door.</p><hr/><p>When Annie makes it up the stairs to Jeff’s apartment twenty minutes later, she almost turns back. She pivots around but pauses, as she’s met face to face with Jeff.</p><p>“Annie?”</p><p>She shifts her feet, keeping one heel on the stairs and one in the hallway. “Hi.”</p><p>“Hey,” Jeff says, a confused smile hinting his face.</p><p>When she doesn’t say anything in the next few moments, Jeff walks up the rest of the way up the stairs. He heads to his door and unlocks it. When Jeff opens it, he stands in his doorway, looking at her with amusement.</p><p>“So, do you like hanging out in hallways now, or do you want to come in?”</p><p>Annie bites back a smile, making her way up the stairs to his door. “You’re supposed to invite guests in, you know.”</p><p>“Annie, your invitation to come in should be implied by now. I don’t have to say it.”</p><p>“You yelled at Britta and Abed for coming into your house when you were out on a run the other day.”</p><p>“That’s different. They were using my place to shoot a movie about a vampire lawyer who sucks the blood of his clients,” he says, with a fond kind of exhaustion. “And secondly, the rules are different for you.”</p><p>Annie raises her heel off the top step and cautiously walks towards him.</p><p>“Why?”</p><p>Jeff blinks, his previous ease replaced with a more hesitant expression.</p><p>It’s an expression Jeff has developed over the years. When they first met, he didn’t hesitate to talk his way out of something. If he could give a speech or lie to get him out of an uncomfortable situation, he would. But now, Jeff debates with himself a little more. He fights the instincts that tell him to take the easy way out.</p><p>After a few moments, Jeff seems to win over his instincts. He takes a step back and motions her forward. “Will you come inside?”</p><p>She walks inside his apartment and is greeted by the familiar smell of sandalwood, his aftershave, and something else that was distinctly Jeff. She guesses that it has to do with his hair products, but she thinks it might just be him.</p><p>Jeff paces over to his bar cart at the side of the room. Annie watches as his hands reach towards the glass and how they flinch back. Instead, Jeff turns to face her.</p><p>“Why what?” he asks.</p><p>“Why is it different with me, Jeff?” she repeats.</p><p>Jeff sighs, his hands going into his pockets. “I don’t know.”</p><p>“That’s exactly why I’m here. You always pretend that you don’t know what this thing between us is. It drives me crazy.” She swallows a lump in her throat and mutters, “I thought you were beyond that.”</p><p>Jeff grimaces, rubbing a hand over his forehead. “That was shitty of me to do back then, and I can’t say sorry enough times for the way I acted. But if it’s still worth anything, I am sorry.”</p><p>They’ve gone through this apology before, but Jeff had never been as blunt as this. Annie forgave him a long time ago. But hearing him apologize for past wrongs took a weight off of her that she didn’t know was there.</p><p>Jeff takes a step towards her, eyes pinned on her. She feels a rush of déjà vu, this situation similar to the one in the study room a year ago.</p><p>It’s like they’re on a precipice, and any moment, they’ll both give into gravity and fall.</p><p>“There is something between us. I’m not pretending there’s not,” Jeff says.</p><p>Annie nods, her shoulders relaxing. This seems to give him more courage, as he reaches his hand out to hers on the counter. Once it lands, she doesn’t feel a shiver or a spark. Instead, she feels warmth—a comforting familiarity as his fingers circle around hers.</p><p>Jeff exhales, his voice low, “I’m just trying to do the right thing here.”</p><p>Annie’s lips turn thin, securing her grip on his hand. “Well, that’s stupid.”</p><p>He smirks. “All those dictionaries at your apartment and ‘stupid’ is the only word you can come up with?” </p><p>“Well, stupid is the perfect word for what you just said.” Annie pulls their two hands off the counter, letting them fall entwined between them. “I get what you’re trying to do, Jeff. You’re waiting for me to make a move. But, you hope I never do because you think being with you would somehow be a setback for me.”</p><p>“Let’s be honest. It would be,” Jeff says with an edge to his voice. “I don’t want you to settle for some washed out lawyer who teaches at a school with a course in cereal box analysis. You’re too good for that. You deserve and want more.”</p><p>Annie sighs. “Do you even know what I want, Jeff?”</p><p>Jeff looks down at the ground, attempting to stifle a laugh.</p><p>Her mouth parts in confusion. “What’s so funny?”</p><p>He shakes his head, biting back a smile. “Nothing…I just imagined you saying that to me once. I didn’t have an answer to it back then.”</p><p>She grabs his other hand, locking her eyes steadfastly onto his.</p><p>“Well, let me give you the answer now. I want you to tell me how you feel—no more tiptoeing around it. No more doing all the things couples do without actually being a couple. No more deciding what I deserve and let me decide.” Annie takes a deep breath, bracing herself as she asks, “Jeff, what do you feel?”</p><p>Instead of saying something snarky to break the tension, or one of them rushing out the door, they both stay silent for a few moments. They both want to do this right for once.</p><p>She feels like their toes are on the edge of that precipice.</p><p>“Look, this thing with me and you, it’s always been something so clear but so overwhelming,” he says. Jeff lets go of one of her hands to cup her cheek. She leans into his touch, and the corners of his mouth cautiously turn upwards. “But what I feel for you isn’t complicated, it’s always been simple.”</p><p>Annie tilts her head, waiting for him to continue into some beautifully crafted speech. But instead, he just shrugs.</p><p>“I love you.”</p><p>It wasn’t Jeff’s longest nor most crafted speech by a landslide. But somehow, it was his best one.</p><p>It was just the plain truth, the irrevocable truth.</p><p>“Jeff,” she says, so softly that she’s not sure she even hears his name come out of her mouth.</p><p>“I love you so much,” Jeff emphasizes, smiling widely now. “It’s amazing, but it is one of the hardest things to deal with at the same time.”</p><p>“But it doesn’t have to be hard,” Annie urges. “If the way we feel about each other isn’t complicated, then being together shouldn’t be either.”</p><p>He considers this, his eyebrows furrowing. “What about your job? You work here now, but I know you’re too good for the FBI not to promote you eventually.”</p><p>“I probably won’t be able to stay here forever, but I want to be with you. We’ll work things out together when that time comes. We can finally be on equal standing.”</p><p>Jeff’s eyes search her like he’s rereading a paragraph of a book, determined not to miss a single word.</p><p>Annie shifts her feet nervously. “So, what do you think?”</p><p>“I think we aren’t quite equal yet,” Jeff teases, rubbing his thumb across her cheek. “I just said I love you, and you didn’t say it back. We have to tip the scales a bit more to be equal.”</p><p>“Oh, come on, Jeff,” she scoffs. “I thought by now, the fact that I love you was implied.”</p><p>He leans down to rest his forehead on hers. Annie takes advantage of the closeness by looping her arms around his neck. She closes the distance, crashing their lips together.</p><p>This kiss is different than anyone they’ve shared before. It’s not urgent and brief, like the one during the debate. It’s not out of control like they’ll never do it again, like the one outside the school dance. It’s not even like the one in the study room, which was soft but restrained because Annie was leaving.</p><p>Instead, in this kiss, neither of them holds anything back. They kiss deeply, thoroughly, like they’re checking some sort box marked yes or no. There’s no maybe about this kiss. It feels like they’ve finally fallen off the precipice, giving in to gravity.</p><p>After a while, Annie pulls back. She knows she doesn’t have to say it, but she feels like she needs to, because she’s tired of leaving things unsaid.</p><p>“I love you,” Annie says, a bit breathlessly.</p><p>Jeff smiles, his hand weaving through her hair.</p><p>When they kiss again, it feels like the scales just became equal.</p><hr/><p>They’re standing in front of what was now Britta and Annie’s apartment door, one they’ve both walked through a million times. Jeff had already snuck in this door three times this week. But today, she sees Jeff’s hand hesitate to reach the doorknob.</p><p>Annie rolls her eyes. “Jeff, relax. We’re going to a party.”</p><p>“Britta will talk about how owning a bar doesn’t mean she supports corporate America. Abed will discuss his show about actors who look scarily like us. Frankie will mysteriously disappear from the room, and who knows what Chang and Craig will do,” Jeff drawls in displeasure. “All of those things don’t classify as a party.”</p><p>“I’ve heard they’ll be pizza,” Annie says, nudging his shoulder gently. “It has to be a party if there’s pizza.”</p><p>Jeff smirks. “Wow, Annie Edison does it again with her superb debating skills.”</p><p>“I could bring them all out, but you’re in no state to hear them.”</p><p>“I’m fine,” Jeff says stiffly. </p><p>“Jeff, you’ve hardly blinked in the past twenty minutes. I almost stopped at the optometrist office on the way over here.” Jeff hung his head, looking away. She smiled softly, grabbing his hand. “I get that this is scary for you. Because once we tell everyone, it’ll mean that we’re official.”</p><p>“That’s not why I’m scared,” Jeff says, his jaw clenching. “I just don’t want them to look at me that way.”</p><p>She quirks her head. “What way?”</p><p>“The way they always look at me when I’m with you. Like I’m some leech, sucking out your innocence.”</p><p>“Well, you’re a handsome leech,” Annie jokes, and she counts it as successful when it makes Jeff’s expression relax. She stands on her toes, pressing a kiss to his cheek. “They’ll be on board, I know it. If not, they’ll get over it.”</p><p>He scans her up and down. “Wow.”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“I like this side of you,” Jeff says, starting to smirk. He takes a step closer, his fingers moving up her waist in a way that makes her shiver. “Are you sure you don’t want to skip the party and do something more—.”</p><p>Annie swats his chest. “Jeff!”</p><p>Jeff smirks harder, turning towards the door. “Alright, I’m knocking.”</p><p>It only takes a few seconds of Jeff knocking for the door to swing open. When it does, they’re greeted by their closest friends. Well, except Troy. He’s still exploring the world on a boat somewhere, but he sent his regards by mailing a strange flamingo statue from somewhere in Europe. It sits in the center of the table where Annie’s antique flower vase used to be.</p><p>Also, Shirley is still off fighting crime by baking, but she had her son, who was visiting friends in the area, drop off a pie for the occasion.</p><p>But everyone else was there, even Abed, who was back from LA for a week.</p><p>The pizza was passed around, and the meal was made somewhat classier by the fancy champagne Britta brought. While everyone insisted that they reimburse her for it (except for Chang, decided he needed to go to the bathroom at that exact moment), Britta insisted that she could afford it. Annie kept her mouth closed, knowing that Britta had asked her parents for more money last week on the phone.</p><p>As they ate, the conversation jumped around every which way like it always did. Annie asked Frankie how Greendale was doing. She’d respond briefly about getting a personal finance course implemented. The Dean cut about how the school turned into a monopoly game because of the course. Jeff threw in some sarcastic responses, but she saw him biting back a smile as they told the story.</p><p>Abed also got to talking about being a showrunner of his sitcom “Study Group.” He told them about their season one wrap-party, that a raccoon got into one of the dressing rooms, and that the cast's oldest actor kept asking for more money. Britta then pipped in about how the entertainment industry was corrupt and paid actors a ridiculous amount of money that could go to better things.</p><p>Once the conversation hit a lull, Annie took the opportunity to say what had been on her mind all night.</p><p>“So, we have an announcement,” Annie says, gesturing to Jeff beside her.</p><p>“You’re getting a parrot,” Abed replies instantly.</p><p>Jeff chokes a little on his drink. “Why in the hell would you think that?”</p><p>“Every sitcom has an unusual pet,” Abed shrugs. “Joey and Chandler had a chicken and duck on Friends. We had a monkey on our show in Greendale. And on Scrubs, they had a dead stuffed dog named—.”</p><p>“If a dead dog is just number three on your list, I don’t want to hear any more examples,” Jeff interrupts.</p><p>“We’re dating,” Annie blurts out, unable to contain it anymore.</p><p>The room goes absolutely quiet, which is really unusual for the group.</p><p>Annie tries hard not to slink down in her seat as everyone stares at her. But then, she feels Jeff’s hand touch her knee. Annie looks over at him and feels warmed by his smile.</p><p>Surprisingly but not surprisingly, it’s Chang who breaks the silence.</p><p>“Really?” he asks, a bit giddily.</p><p>“Yes. For about three months,” Annie answers, placing her hand on top of Jeff’s on the table. “We wanted it to just be between us for a while. But we thought it was time to tell you guys.”</p><p>Abed looks unfazed, casually picking up another slice of pizza. “This is sort of anticlimactic. Usually, when a secret couple gets outed, it’s more dramatic.”</p><p>“Yeah, but they weren’t really a secret,” Britta says.</p><p>“Yes, we were!”</p><p>Britta quirks her head, looking smug. “Annie, I saw you and Jeff making out in the hallway of the bar two weeks ago.”</p><p>“I saw you and Jeff holding hands in his office,” Dean adds, sounding a bit bitter that it wasn’t him.</p><p>“I saw you guys at the movie theatre yesterday, and Jeff was eating buttered popcorn. I was confused, as he usually calls it a nutritional nightmare,” Abed says, looking thoughtful. “Jeff getting drunk at my birthday last month and saying he was in love with you also makes more sense now.”</p><p>“You guys are in love?!” Britta exclaims.</p><p>Annie turns to Jeff, amused that out of the two of them, he was the one who let it slip. He shoots her a grimace, a hazy memory probably coming back to him.</p><p>Frankie frowns. “I thought you two were just hooking up.”</p><p>Jeff ignores them, turning to Abed. “How did saying that I loved Annie I not tip you off that we were dating?”</p><p>“You two have been a will they won’t they couple for six seasons. Plus, all the time we’ve been off the air since we left the study room. Your feelings for each other have always been obvious even when you didn’t act on them,” Abed shrugs simply. “Also, the Borchert lab thing was a dead giveaway. It was romantic, but to be honest, it was a bit on the nose as a viewer.”</p><p>“What Borchert lab thing?” Annie asks.</p><p>Jeff abruptly stands up. “Who wants more drinks?”</p><p>Although no one answers, Jeff goes to the kitchen anyway, taking his chance to escape.</p><p>Annie stands up to see if he’s ok, but she feels a hand tugging on her elbow. She turns, startled to see that it’s Frankie.</p><p>“Annie, can we talk for a second?”</p><p>Annie shakes off her surprise and nods. “Uh, sure.”</p><p>Frankie lets go of Annie’s elbow and guides them to the hall. Once they’re out of earshot, Frankie takes a firm stance in front of Annie. “Have you thought this through?”</p><p>Annie sighs. “Frankie—.”</p><p>“I know the idea of dating an older man might be enticing to you now, but it’s not healthy,” Frankie interrupts, her face as stagnant as always. “You should consider the basis of your feelings, and make sure they’re genuine. I’m pretty sure Jeff’s aren’t.”</p><p>While Annie expected this reaction from Britta or Shirley, she didn’t think it would come from Frankie. Frankie usually had a good read on people and knew when to keep unwarranted judgments to herself. But everything she was saying made Annie think that Frankie didn’t understand them at all.</p><p>Frankie places a hand on her arm. “Maybe you two should take a break. I don’t want you getting hurt—.”</p><p>“Frankie, stop. I’m an adult,” Annie interrupts, flinching away from her touch. “We want your support because you’re our friend, but we don’t need it. You can’t tell us how we do and don’t feel. This is not some childish fantasy I’m fulfilling, and this isn’t Jeff going through a mid-life crisis. I love him, and he loves me.”</p><p>Once she’s done, she watches Frankie work to process her words. After a few beats, she deflates.</p><p>“Alright, I’m still not convinced, but I won’t challenge you on it anymore. I’m sorry.”</p><p>Annie didn’t feel like Frankie entirely meant the apology, but she nods anyway. Deep down, Frankie is just trying to look out for her. But regardless, it hurt that Frankie thought she was so naive, and that Jeff was out to break everything in his path.</p><p>After a few more moments, they rejoined the group at the table. Everyone had gone back to normal, but Annie could feel Britta’s eyes heavy on her. After people started to clear the table, Annie gathered the courage to stand and sit next to Britta.</p><p>“Britta, I’m sorry the news about Jeff and me slipped out. I wanted to tell you alone first.”</p><p>“Why?” Britta snorts. “I’d have missed out on that whole scene. Although, I’ll probably be able to watch it again on Abed’s show next season.”</p><p>“I know you and Jeff have a history. Everyone else’s opinions on this aren’t as important. But yours is, you’re my best friend. If you’re not ok with this, then we can talk and—.”</p><p>“Annie I am ok with this,” Britta says, stopping Annie’s blabbering by putting a hand on her arm. “I’m happy for you two.”</p><p>Annie stills, squinting at her. “You are?”</p><p>Britta leans back in her chair. “Look, I know I haven’t been in your guys’ corner in the past. But these past three months, you and Jeff have been really happy.”  </p><p>She chews on her lower lip. “But what about you and Jeff?”</p><p>“We hooked up, and sure there were some feelings there, and a random engagement—but we’re much better friends than a couple,” Britta insists. She leans towards Annie, smiling gently. “Don’t tell him I said this, but we’re too similar. You guys weirdly balance each other out.”</p><p>Annie releases a breath, smiling brightly. “Thanks, Britta.”</p><p>“Now let’s drink like there’s no tomorrow!” Britta shouts, raising a glass, but then lowers it with a wince. “Except I have a final in the morning, so I’ll have just one drink.”</p><p>Annie laughs and tells her she’d get another bottle from the kitchen. When she enters, she sees Jeff grabbing some glasses from the cupboard. She watches him for a few seconds, jealous of his height before he realizes she’s there.</p><p>He smiles, leaning down and kissing her softly. When they part, his hands go around her waist.</p><p>“You ok?” she asks.</p><p>“Yeah,” Jeff shrugs. “It actually went better than I thought.”</p><p>“Frankie cornered me, though,” Annie winces.</p><p>Jeff’s lips purse. “I expected that.”</p><p>“Really? I didn’t.”</p><p>“I get where she’s coming from. I didn’t have friends like this before I met you guys, and Frankie didn’t either,” Jeff says. “She’s just afraid of something screwing up the group and losing it.”</p><p>“If anything is going to screw it up, it’s Chang who’s currently dangling from the chandelier as the Dean sings a Taylor Swift song horribly,” Annie counters, looking over to the living room, where Frankie was trying to pull Chang down. “This will only end in destruction and tears.”</p><p>“But it’s great material for Abed’s show,” Jeff smirks.</p><p>She laughs. “We need to talk to him about getting syndication cash or something.”</p><p>Annie begins to pull away from Jeff so she can go and stop Chang from ripping a hole in her ceiling, but Jeff grabs her hand.</p><p>“I love you,” he says.</p><p>She beams, the words etching themselves deeper into her bones. “I know.”</p><hr/><p>When Annie entered his apartment a few months later, she let out a long exhale, putting her purse on the table. She walks into the living room, and she sees Jeff sitting on the couch. </p><p>“How was work?” he asks.</p><p>“Busy,” Annie says, plopping down next to him. “All the interns kept asking me questions nonstop while I was trying to work.”</p><p>“You used to be one of those interns, you know.”</p><p>“Hey, my questions were all amazing,” Annie defends.</p><p>Jeff smiles, his eyes gleaming in the way that still makes her blush. “I have no doubt they were.”</p><p>She turns to the table in front of them, looking for his stack of menus. “Want to order takeout?”</p><p>“Actually, I already made us something.”</p><p>Before she can ask, he stands, holding his arms out to her. Annie gives him a questioning look but grabs his hands and lets him pull her up. When she enters the kitchen, her mouth drops open.</p><p>There’s a bowl of her favorite pasta, salad, and a loaf of bread that looks fresh on the table. There were also candles and napkins folded perfectly, in the way that Annie taught Jeff on a lazy Sunday afternoon.</p><p>“This looks amazing,” Annie says, beaming at it all. When her eyes drift to his plate that’s already served with food, she stills. “But wait, there are carbohydrates on your plate.”</p><p>He rolls his eyes and pulls out her chair. “They’re not going to kill me.”</p><p>She grabs his shoulders. “Who are you, and what have you done with Jeff Winger?”</p><p>“Tonight’s special,” he says, motioning for her to sit. “Plus, I’ll run a mile tomorrow morning.”</p><p>“Why’s tonight special?”</p><p>His hand nervously scratches his neck. “Well, it’s kind of an anniversary.”</p><p>Annie feels panicked before remembering the date today and shakes her head. “No, it’s not. The anniversary of our first date is two weeks from now.”</p><p>“Not that anniversary, a different one,” he says, shifting in his chair. Annie observes him, seeing how his shoulders go rigid. He takes a long breath, swirling the liquid in his glass. “Do you remember Borchert lab?”</p><p>“It’s hard to forget going under the campus and finding a guy trapped with a supercomputer who helped us save Greendale from Subway.”</p><p>“I don’t know, that scheme was like any other Wednesday at Greendale.”</p><p>“The Greendale student handbook says Wednesdays are for tomfoolery, not scheming,” Annie points out, twirling a noodle on her fork. “Scheming’s on Thursdays, and hijinks are on Fridays.”</p><p>He smiles tightly. “Do you remember that to get out, I had to put on that helmet?”</p><p>“Oh yeah,” Annie nods, the memory coming back to her. “He said that only a blast of passion could open the door. I always wondered what you thought of to get it to work. Scotch?”</p><p>“You.”</p><p>Annie drops her fork, her eyes shooting up at him.</p><p>Jeff puts down his glass. “I thought of you, and the door opened.”</p><p>“And you broke off the engagement with Britta right after,” she finishes, her breath quickening.</p><p>“It was that day a few years ago that I knew. I couldn’t deny that I loved you anymore, at least not to myself.” He reaches for Annie’s hand in the middle of the table with a timid smile. “It’s what eventually lead us here.”</p><p>Her eyes tear up, holding his hand tightly. “Then, I’m glad there was a weird robot and a man under Greendale. It brought us here.”</p><p>“That’s what I wanted to talk to you about,” Jeff says, sitting up in his chair. “What if we weren’t here?”</p><p>Annie frowns. “What do you mean?”</p><p>“I saw the letter offering you the FBI job in Seattle. It fell behind your desk.”</p><p>She winces. “Jeff, I was going to tell you about it, but I just wanted to figure out what to do first.”</p><p>“What do you mean what to do? You need to take this job. You want it, and you’d be good at it.”</p><p>Annie knows this, yet when she got the letter, she found herself hesitant to reply. She’d left Greendale before, and it had been a good thing, but this somehow felt more permanent. It wasn’t just an internship; it was a position that she could excel at and lead her to other jobs and places.</p><p>It would mean Annie was moving on from Greendale—for good, and that terrified her.</p><p>“But all of our friends are here,” Annie says faintly.</p><p>“Abed’s is in California, Shirley’s somewhere solving crime, and Troy’s in the middle of the ocean,” he says, narrowing his eyes. “Britta and Frankie are still here, but Frankie’s always looking out for better jobs, and Britta’s thinking about transferring to a business program in London to be with Duncan.”</p><p>“Jeff, you’re here,” Annie points out, stressing his importance to her.</p><p>Jeff scoots closer. “What if I wasn’t?”</p><p>“You’d come with me?” she asks, her eyes widening. Jeff nods, and his resolution makes Annie overwhelmed. “Jeff, I couldn’t ask you to do that.”</p><p>“I want to Annie,” he assures. “Remember when we started dating, and we said we would deal with things on equal terms? This is me telling you I want to go with you, and me asking if you’re ok with that.”</p><p>Annie shakes off her worry breaking into a smile. “Of course, I’m ok with that!”</p><p>She jumps up, bombarding him with a hug. He wraps his arms around her, and she feels him smile into her neck.</p><p>But then, she pulls away as a thought crosses her mind. “What about your job at Greendale?”</p><p>He tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “About that, I was thinking of giving up teaching. While it’s not so bad, I want to practice law again. There are a few firms that have agreed to meet me in Seattle.”</p><p>“Jeff, that’s incredible! I’m so proud of you.”</p><p>When they finally part, remembering their food turning cold, Jeff’s expression turns more melancholic. “The hardest thing will be saying goodbye, even though that’s what I wanted to do as quickly as possible when I started at Greendale.”</p><p>“We don’t have to say goodbye, though,” Annie says. “It’ll be more of a see you soon.”</p><p>Jeff and Annie start talking about the details over dinner. He doesn’t even blink when he talks about moving in together at Seattle, and Annie doesn’t jump up and down because it’s not a big deal. Maybe on Abed’s show, it would lead one of them into a mass panic, emphasizing the will they won’t they dynamic.</p><p>But there’s no will they won’t they about them.</p><p>Annie smiles across the table, and Jeff smiles back.</p><p>It’s really that simple.</p>
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